flowerfarmer--thanks for asking.

I probably can't help you tho. I didn't get Prospero; I have Naomi, Lagoon, Bon Bini, and Amanda. I think I thought I had Thalia, but re-looking at the flyer, the ones I have marked are the ones I just listed. Naomi must be the dark purple/maroon that bloomed ONE BLOOM!!!!!! a few weeks ago.

I can't remember which is where. I did label them, but I haven't been on my hands & knees in a while to find the labels.

Our heat & drought is causing catastophe for my dahlias. What a year for the uninitiated into dahlias! I had such high hopes! I've lost A BUNCH of plants to drought, they've just fried. I still have one section that are just maybe 10 inches tall; some of the probable Naomi's are about 2- 2.5 tall. Maybe not even 3' yet. VERY few blooms. I'm watering almost every night, and still they droop and swoon in this heat. If I can keep them alive til the fall cool spell sometime in Sept or Oct, I'm hoping that then I might have some flowers.

I did give each plant a sprinkling/small handful of organic rose fertilizer a few days ago. 6-8-6 or something similar. Lots of leaves were/are yellowing, and I figured it couldn't hurt. Don't think I gave them enough to burn the plants, esp. considering how much I'm watering. And, they'd had no fertilizer since I planted them in late March.

Ironically (?) the very few plants I managed to get mulch around are my shortest! And they're wilting as fast as the non-mulched plants. Go figure!

Last time I visited w/ Sherri, she said she was having height problems on her Karmas, and she has ALL of hers in full sun. (We have the same varieties). I thought for a while that my short ones were in more shade than the others, but I think the sun has changed locations enough in the sky that the short ones "seem" to be getting as much as the "tall" ones. None of them are 48" though.

If I hadn't heard a fairly local dahlia grower last fall rave about his (non-Karma, "ordinary") dahlias, I'd be more believeing of a friend who claims we can't grow dahlias in Texas. I think she said it's because it gets too hot, (which it is), but I thought Dahlias originated in hot climates anyway.

Oh wellllll. Experience is "grand", isn't it?! LOL!

Per one of your responses to the "how to cut dahlias" thread, I have cut out the center bloom on a few plants, hoping to build up longer stems on the side buds. So far, no effect, but that may be because of the heat.

Let us know what Germania says. Good luck at your market tomorrow/today--whenever you read this.

Susi.

flowerfarmer---

Did you ever talk to Germania about the Karma's? If you did, what did they say? Have you had any improvement in the ones you're growing since you posted earlier?

Let us know.....

Susi.

Susi, This afternoon we received follow-up information on the Karma dahlia which we were having problems -- Prospero. It's a new one. The grower informed us this is a dwarf variety. It should, however, be as tall as Amanda and Lagoon -- which it is not. So, his second thought was that since it blooms late, and the strange early weather we have all been having, it has caused this one to bloom short. His suggestion was to pinch out the buds, fertilize them; and, this will force longer lateral growth. So, we shall give this a try.

All the other dahlias in the hoophouse are performing exceptionally well. We picked every bloom last Friday for market. By Monday night, you could not tell we had picked any. We just keep picking, and picking, and picking those long stems. Our dahlias in the field have also started pumping out blooms. We are up to our eyeballs in dahlias. And, I am on my way out to pinch back those blooms on Prospero before I forget.

Flowerfarmer--thanks for the info. Wouldn't it have been nice for the grower/company to inform you of Prospero's "dwarf" status when you first ordered them? LOL!

Do you make "dwarf", "small", "miniature" bouquets? Maybe they'd be usable in that size arrangement.

If/when you ever have time, let us know which "regular" dahlias you're growing that are so proflific, and/or, your favorite/best selling ones. Either on this thread or start a new one. I know there've been several dahlia threads in recent months, but if anybody listed specific varieties, I dont remember.

I think you said you grow 1-2 ACRES of them, (WOW!!!!), so how do you portion out how many of each variety that you grow? Well, duh again, that probably depends on how much of each variety you have on hand! So, maybe my question is, do you allocate "prime space" to any particular varieties if "perfect space" isn't available to all of them?

It's too late, I'm probably not thinking clearly, and am surely rattling on.

Will it help your Prosperos if you whisper (or yell? lol!) at them, "Grow, Dxxxxit, Grow!" when you pinch their buds?

Susi.

Update on the Karma dahlia, 'Prospero.' We did just as the grower suggested: pinched, fertilized and waited. They are now performing as they should. Beautiful dahlia. We just needed to be patient on this one. It isn't that dwarf in the hoophouse after all. Nice height.

The dahlias in the field are now in their glory. It's really a sight to behold. We have "drive-bys." Some people drive right into the lane. This is ok as long as we don't find them wandering about in the field clippers in hand.......